For me, AdWords is not a viable option anymore.
My advice is always to remember you are in business to make money. Do not get caught up in "buying" traffic that cost you more than you make. For most AdWord campaigns, Google is the only one making money.

People get caught up in the cost per click.  It really doesn't matter if you are paying 10 cents a click or $85.00 a click. What matters is how many sales you can get out of it.  They want to be number one for a keyword.  Why?

I'm in the promotional products business - ink pens, coffee cups, etc. I see people bidding some of these keywords up to $5 - $6 a click. 
That sounds okay at first, but for me, I have to get a lot of traffic to my website to get an actual buyer. My average sale is less than $500 gross so I can't afford to pay $5 a click.  For my business, there are a lot of "tire kickers" out there that are shopping.  Your business may be different, but it is very rare that someone clicks on an ad and buys immediately.  Everyone is shopping for the best price and value.

So, don't get caught up on cost per click.  You have to know your cost per sale. 

I had a client in the air conditioning business. In the middle of the hot Texas summer, he was paying close to $100  for a click.  Worthwhile when you are selling a $5,000 unit but he did not close every deal. Ultimately he was just breaking even.

I suspect there are people that will not agree with me on this. I do believe businesses can make money with AdWords but I think most people pay way too much money to Google for what they get in return.